Suburban white-tailed deer seropositive for Toxoplasma gondii from Chicago, Illinois.

The presence and abundance of vertebrates influences the circulation of zoonotic diseases. White-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) are widely distributed in North America and deer densities are frequently high in unhunted areas, including most major metropolitan regions. This study investigated the seroprevalence for Toxoplasma gondii from live-captured and culled deer sampled in two suburban forest preserves around Chicago, Illinois, from 1995 to 1999. Seroprevalence for T. gondii was 55.9% (n = 443) and was significantly higher at the northern study site, Des Plaines. Seroprevalence for T. gondii varied by year and month. Multivariate logistic regression (LR) screened main effect variables (age, sex, site, year, and month) by backward stepwise elimination. The final LR model for T. gondii contained all main effect variables. This study provides baseline data for future T. gondii suburban deer studies and information to public health and wildlife officials regarding the prevalence a parasitic pathogen present in two public forest preserves in Chicago, Illinois.